George Harvey Strait (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer. Strait is referred to as the âKing of Country,â and critics call Strait a living legend.[1] He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional country western music. George Strait holds the world record for more #1 hit singles than any other artist in the history of music on any chart or in any genre. As of 2010 he has amassed 57 #1 hits.
Strait rocketed to success after his debut single âUnwoundâ in 1981. While contributing to the neo-traditional movement of the 1980s, he amassed 18 number one singles and seven number one albums in the decade with hits such as âFool Hearted Memoryâ and âOcean Front Propertyâ. By the 1990s, Strait had influenced a new breed of performers while continuing his own successes with 17 number one hits including âHeartlandâ and âBlue Clear Skyâ. The next decade for which he was named Artist Of The Decade by the ACM, he was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame and won his first Grammy award for his hit album Troubadour. Strait continued his previous successes during this time, producing a more contemporary sound with moderate cross-over hits including âSheâll Leave You with a Smileâ and âYouâll Be Thereâ.
Strait won CMA Entertainer of the year in 1989 and 1990 and ACM Entertainer of the year in 1990. He has been nominated for more CMA and ACM awards and has more wins in both categories than any other artist. As of 2009, he holds the record for the most Number One hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts with 44 number one singles on that chart. Counting all other music charts, Strait has amassed a total of 57 number one hits overall, breaking a record previously set by Conway Twitty.
Strait has sold more than 68.5 million albums in the United States and his certifications from the RIAA include 13 multi-platinum, 33 platinum and 38 gold albums. His best-selling album is Pure Country (1992), which sold 6 million (6Ã Multi-platinum). His highest certified album is Strait Out of the Box (1995), which sold 2 million copies (8Ã Multi-Platinum due to being a box set with four CDs). According to the RIAA, Strait is the 12th best-selling recording artist with the albums in the United States overall.
Early life
Strait was born in Poteet, Texas, just south of San Antonio, and grew up in the nearby town of Pearsall. His father, John Byron Strait, was a junior high school mathematics teacher, who owned a 2,000 acre (8 km²) cattle ranch outside of Big Wells, Texas. The family would work at the farm on the weekends and in the summers. Straitâs mother, Doris Couser Strait, left with George Straitâs sister Pency when he was in third grade, leaving him and his brother John Jr. to be raised by their father.
Strait began his musical interest while attending Pearsall High School, playing in a rock and roll garage band. His musical preference soon turned to country with singers Lefty Frizzell, Merle Haggard, George Jones, Bob Wills, Hank Williams and Frank Sinatra influencing his style. Strait didnât tune to the country music radio often as a youth, usually listening to the news and the farmerâs report. His introduction to country music came mostly by way of live performances, which, according to Strait, could be heard in every town in Texas. He eloped with his high school sweetheart, Norma. The couple initially married in Mexico on December 4th 1971 but repeated their vows in a church in Texas a few weeks later. In 1971, Strait enlisted in the US Army. While stationed at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii as a part of the 25th Infantry division (light), he began performing with an Army-sponsored band, âRambling Countryâ, which played off-base under the name âSanteeâ. On October 6, 1972, while still in Hawaii, George and Norma welcomed their first child, Jenifer.
After Strait was honorably discharged from the army in 1975, he enrolled at Southwest Texas State University (now known as Texas State University) in San Marcos, Texas, and received a degree in Agriculture. During his college years, he joined the country band Stoney Ridge, answering a flyer the band posted around campus looking for a new vocalist. Strait renamed the group the Ace in the Hole and quickly became the lead , they began to perform at different honky tonks and bars around south and central Texas, traveling as far east as Huntsville and Houston. They gained a regional following and opened for national acts such as The Texas Playboys. Soon, his band was given the opportunity to record several Strait-penned singles including âThat Donât Change The Way I Feel About Youâ, for the Houston-based D label. However, the songs never achieved wide recognition, and Strait continued to manage his family cattle ranch during the day in order to make some extra cash.
While he continued to play with his band without any real connections to the music industry, Strait became friends with Erv Woolsey, who operated one of the bars in which the Ace in the Hole band played, and who had previously worked for the major label MCA Records. Woolsey convinced some of his Music Row connections to come to Texas and to listen to Strait and his band play. Impressed with the performance, MCA quickly signed Strait to a recording contract in 1980. The Ace in the Hole remained with Strait, performing as the backup and touring.
Awards
Strait owns the record for having the most number one songs in the history of music of any kind. Strait also holds the record of the most number one albums,gold albums,and platinum albums in the history of county music and is 11th in the most number one albums in all other genres. Strait is third only to elvis and the beatles with the most gold and platinum albums in the history of music. He is also the ninth best selling artist in American music history. Strait is the only artists in the history of music to have a top ten hit every year for thirty years. He also is second all time in top ten hits in the history of music currently 10 away from breaking the all time record held by eddy arnold who had 92 in his historic caerer.| Strait has also won 22 CMA Awards, including consecutive entertainer of the year honors in 1989 and 1990, and holds the career record for CMA nominations and as of 2008 holds the record for the most CMA awards, Strait also holds those same records for wins and nominations for the ACM awards as well. Strait was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006. Strait performed his No. 1 hit âGive it Awayâ right before accepting his replica Hall of Fame plaque at the 40th CMA Awards. He was only the second artist (after Eddy Arnold in 1966) to be inducted into the Hall of Fame while still actively recording and producing chart-topping hits and albums.
As of June 8, 2010 George Strait was name the top country music artist of the past 25 years according to billboard magazine.In October 2008, the Academy of Country Music Awards announced that Strait has been named their Artist of the Decade for the 2000s and was presented the award by the previous winner Garth Brooks. Past winners of the award are Marty Robbins (1960s), Loretta Lynn (1970s), Alabama (1980s) and Garth Brooks (1990s).
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